This proposal is to develop curricular materials for the newly emerging field of Hurricane Engineering. It will develop and implement several new courses, create a new civil engineering minor in the field at Louisiana State University, and broadly disseminate this information via publication of the first textbook on Hurricane Engineering and through a web-based program.
A multi-disciplinary project team with expertise in many aspects of Hurricane Engineering has been formed. It consists of 23 faculty from civil, environmental, chemical, and mechanical engineering, coastal science, landscape architecture, and environmental studies. The lead units are the Louisiana State University Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering and the LSU Hurricane Center, with participation from other LSU departments, Southern University, and the University of Missouri-Rolla. The team will develop the first textbook in the field, as well as web-based educational materials and modules. The materials will address planning, analysis, design, response, and recovery of civil engineering systems and infrastructure. The scope ranges from individual buildings to levees to entire transportation networks. LSU will use these materials to create three new civil engineering courses, which will form the basis of a new civil engineering minor in Hurricane Engineering. A course, Hurricanes and the Built Environment, will be developed for non-engineering majors. This course will be a core component of a new degree in Disaster Science, Mitigation, and Management, being developed by the LS U Hurricane Center for the College of Arts and Sciences.
